Full term!!!

 Definitely the size of a watermelon now!

In honor of the big milestone, I'll do the old survey:
How far along? 37 weeks... that's only 21 days to go!
Total weight gain/loss: Just like last time, I think I'm about 27-28 lb up. I checked my weight today at my appointment, I just don't know exactly where I started.
Sleep: sleep is okay, I usually wake up around 4-5 in the morning and have some trouble getting to sleep. I should go to bed earlier, but Riley doesn't go to sleep until about 9, and I like to relax and watch a little tv after I get things cleaned up and do any chores... before I know it, it's after 11!
Best moment this week: We had our carseats inspected this past weekend, and I was happy to get them to fit both rear-facing, with the infant seat in the middle, just like I was hoping to. Inconvenient, but I have piece of mind feeling like the seats are safe!!
Best moment this month, though (because I haven't posted in so long!) was definitely the girls' weekend with friends to celebrate the new baby, complete with a Philly+baby themed scavenger hunt!! It was made even better having one friend's baby along and the other entering her second trimester with what will be the fourth kid-dition to our group! I can't believe how quickly we seemed to go from 3 of us to 7 of us... probably 8 of us by this time next year (or close to it)! ;)
Movement: SOOO much! The baby seems really big, but my midwife only estimates it at about 5.5-6 lb right now.
Food cravings: nothing out of the ordinary with my eating habits from pre-pregnancy
Gender: I kinda think girl, mostly because the midwife estimated the size so small, and because we keep calling baby "she"... but that could be out of habit. Also, not much seems different from last time. But who knows! We'll find out soon enough!
Labor signs: Contractions all the time... but I am pretty sure at least most of them are braxton hicks. Some of them are getting pretty uncomfortable though!
Belly Button in or out? very out for a long time now. eww.
What I miss: Being comfortable! I feel like my uterus is bigger this time... I am very limited in the ways I can sit and lay down. My midwife commented that my uterus is all the way against my sternum. Not sure where else it can grow! I'm measuring about 2 cm behind, but growing weekly so no worries... but we'll see what happens over the next few weeks!
What I am looking forward to: hmm I guess just figuring out a plan for work, and getting things set for my leave. Right now I'm not really sure what is going to happen with my work- I'm afraid it's just going to stand still until I come back, but it kinda has a time limit so it's stressing me out!
Weekly wisdom: I have nothing...
Milestones: I'm full term!

Here is my belly tonight:

 Compared to last time at 37 weeks:

And compared to a couple of weeks ago:

In Riley updates, she is doing great... talking all.the.time, moving constantly day and night (she cannot sit still!) and getting more coordinated every day. Her new thing is doing sommersaults, which she is surprisingly good at when she gets her legs over, but that is only about 1/4 of the time- the other 3/4 of the time she kinda just rolls to the side. She loves doing yoga too, and is getting pretty good balance!


So sad- I have no pictures on my phone from the past month or so! Here's an older one, I'll upload some from the camera soon...
 


In cognitive growth, I think she has gone from being a "two-knower" to a "three-knower"! She has understood the concept of two for a while, but today was the first time I was confident that she understood the quantity 3! Also, she is getting better at counting into the teens and knowing numbers in the 20s! She knows sooo many songs, and makes up a lot of her own, and LOVES to dance. Now she is getting coordinated enough to play her guitar (a ukelele) and sing at the same time, and the other day she entertained company by playing it while also "playing" the tuner :)
She still wants to pretend to be a baby, but I think it may pass once the baby is here... I guess we will find out soon enough!

Some videos:
Playing the guitar- this video is kinda old, but cute... I'd say it's from about a month ago? 

First time mini-golfing (out of the house- she's got a set of plastic clubs and plays at home with Mr. Beaver)

 

Updates! 32-33 weeks!

Less than 8 weeks to go!!!! So crazy- it feels so close now. I see Halloween decorations and costumes around already, and realize the baby is due two weeks before Halloween! Riley is getting antsy- she tells me almost daily that the baby doesn't need or want to grow anymore, that it is big enough, and that it needs to come out. But at the same time, she has wanted to pretend she is a baby at home- wanting me to hold her like a baby, feed her, and pretending to cry... so I think she has some mixed emotions. Unfortunately she also says she needs diapers when she is a baby, but she still tells us when she needs to go potty and mostly stays dry, and she's diaper-free at school! She's still pretty independent at home most of the time, she opens the fridge to get snacks for herself, plays with puzzles or blocks on her own, and this morning she even picked out clothes and got dressed on her own before waking me up! Aron was impressed she even picked out a Dolphin's shirt, since they have a game tonight :) (oops- last night now!) She insisted on wearing it backwards, but I'm sure they'll convince her to turn it by the time I pick her up from school. (update- they didn't ;))

I have finally started to think about preparing for the baby- like when I should find the infant car seat, what other stuff I should find (bouncy chair, swing, etc.) and have even started going through riley's baby clothes to sort out the newborn and 0-3 month sizes. Luckily it seems like we have a ton of gender neutral stuff for those sizes, so we are good to go even if we have a boy!

I am feeling pretty good these days, I don't feel like I am/look enormous yet but I am very obviously nearing the end. I get comments about looking great every now and then which is awesome, and also funny because half the time it is from people who don't know how far along I am :)  My mentor told me that she has never seen someone look pregnant like I am- she said I look exactly the same but with a basketball stuffed under my shirt. I took it like a compliment, and a sign that I should wear that dress more often! I am measuring small but close enough on track. I was 29 cm last time, at 32 weeks and a few days, so about 3 cm small, but with a 1cm gain since the last appointment two weeks ago. My midwife wasn't worried so I'm not either! I think I am gaining weight slowly, but not very much. I'm slightly ahead of last time- at about 21 or 22 lbs, but I am hardly ever hungry and feel full super fast when I eat. I drink a ton, or at least I try to, but I have to force myself to eat three meals a day- I don't even feel like snacking! I don't know if the baby just isn't growing much these past weeks or what... but there is tons of movement, so I think he or she is very healthy. Sometimes the baby stretches out or to the side, and my muscles actually feel sore from being stretched too much! But just like riley, I don't feel kicks in my ribs yet, so maybe I'll avoid that like last time! On our ultrasound the baby was head-down in a pike position, and I think the legs stay curled up or pushed out rather than up when baby does move around. We still don't know the gender- Mr. Beaver tried to peek but couldn't see anything... we both slip and use female pronouns, but I think that's just out of habit!

We have our birth refresher class on Monday, and my mom bought her flights to come around my due date, so I feel like we are as prepared as we should be at this point! Even though it's early, we do have a plan for Riley in case anything happens in the next 7 weeks and my mom's not here yet. It was a little weird to schedule the rest of my appointments last night- I have appointments at 35 weeks, 37, 38, 39, and 40! So weird to think that I will probably only have 4-5 more appointments before our baby arrives!

Quick riley update!

I thought of something I want to remember for riley's timeline: she has not used a pacifier in three days!! She had only been allowed to have it in her room for the last 6 months or so, so really she only used it for sleeping at night and naps on the weekend. We had been planning to take it away for a while, but she gets so upset!! Finally, a few days ago, she lost it somewhere. We have no idea where it went (she only had the one she used). Since then, we have just told her we can't find it, and she has slept three nights now without it! There have been a few tears and some sadness, but not nearly as bad as previous attempts to take it away. She is also waking up earlier without it- I think she would wake up and go back to sleep when she had it, and now she doesn't go back to sleep, so wakes up between 6-7:30 instead of between 7-8:30. Now we just need to find the missing pacifier before she does- I don't know what would happen if she found it and used it again, I think it would negate the past three days of not having it.

30/31 Weeks!

I can't believe I'm already in the homestretch of pregnancy! More than 75% done... it is crazy. I started having appointments every 2 weeks now, and the midwives have started talking about all of the details about delivering at the birth center. It seems so crazy to be thinking about how it is almost time for all of the last minute stuff- packing my bag, filling out pre-registration forms, installing the car seat, etc. We haven't even begun looking for all of the baby stuff in the basement yet! Even though I'm past 30 weeks, I think I'll give myself another month before worrying about all this stuff :)

I am feeling pretty good so far... I've been noticing some braxton hicks over the past few weeks but they are pretty infrequent and not all that uncomfortable, so no biggie. Definitely no signs of early labor, so that is good! At my appointment this week I was up about 19-20 lbs, which is where I was at this point last time. Clothing-wise I'm doing pretty good with elastic waist skirts and non-maternity dresses for work, but the only shorts I wear are maternity. I haven't gotten any pregnancy comments besides asking my due date, and one kind coworker who commented that besides my belly bump I don't look pregnant at all, which has been very nice :)  I still don't have any food cravings, and actually don't feel any different hunger-wise than when I'm not pregnant. I don't even feel that tired yet, besides regular sleepiness when I don't get enough sleep at night. Sleep has gotten a little more difficult than normal, I wake up a lot and feel like I need to turn from side to side pretty often, which is hard because I sleep on a couple pillows under my head and one folded between my knees. But for being this far along, I think I'm doing pretty well! I feel TONS of movement almost constantly throughout the day (and night!) so I am enjoying that, even though sometime the baby's legs push out so hard and far it actually hurts!

We were lucky enough to get to see the baby today during a bonus ultrasound... a local medical school needed "models" for their ultrasound training, so I volunteered. It was not what I was expecting...I thought it would be a teacher and student, with the teacher guiding the student through doing an ultrasound. Instead, I walk in to a classroom with a bed and ultrasound machine up front, and a huge screen with projector! The instructor talked the class through the ultrasound while they watched the huge screen. It was a little awkward at first, but it ended up being the most interesting ultrasound I've had! It was nice to actually learn what it was they are looking at, how they find the different images they need to get, what all those letters they label with mean, etc. Everything looked great with the baby, the cord, the placenta, and my fluid levels, so that was a huge relief of course too. Everything measured pretty close to what it should be, and the estimated weight was a healthy 3 lb 8 oz!

I've already written so much I think I should put off a riley update for now, but I did take a new belly pic:

And here's 30 weeks from last time as a comparison: 
(I think I look bigger this time!!)

29 weeks!

Here's a picture from earlier this week:

Nothing too new to report, except on behalf of the toddler -- who has not worn diapers during the day for a full week now!! She is far from being potty trained, but outside of naps and nighttime we are able to keep her from having accidents as long as we stay on top of things and sit her on the potty often enough. We actually set an alarm to remind ourselves, and we may have unintentionally conditioned the alarm sound to be a potty trigger... the other day it went off and we ignored it because we were doing something and she had just gone about 30 min earlier, and she had an accident! But for not really doing much intentional potty training, I am surprised at how few accidents we have had (less than one a day). We have even had some successful poops on the potty.
I don't really have time for more update right now, but hopefully I'll think of doing it more now that I am having appointments every two weeks. 

28 Weeks already!

I can't believe it is only about 12 weeks until the second baby beaver is born! I feel like this pregnancy has just flown by, and before I know it October will be here. I am pretty similar to last pregnancy, I never really had cravings or many symptoms...and a lot of movement as time goes on! I think I am ahead a little bit on weight gain this time, but only a few pounds. I had my appointment with the midwives this week and had gained 4 lbs, and when they measured me I was up 5 cm from the previous appointment!! The midwife did think she was measuring a little foot stretching up a little bit, though, but she couldn't push it down. So things seem to be going right on track!

I am wearing mostly pre-pregnancy dresses that are not fitted around the waist, because all of my maternity clothes from last time were winter clothes. The dresses seem to be working out; luckily I've got a lot of them. I bought one pair of maternity shorts and the fit is horrible (and they are majorly mom-jeans style), so I may try to avoid buying any more clothes and just survive on pre-pregnancy dresses and tops with maternity jeans, plus the few stretch pair that still button.  If only the heat waves would stop!! I love hot weather, but I definitely feel a lot hotter pregnant! Plus, it makes it harder to stay active and walk... but lately I've been doing a lot better. I do a prenatal yoga video almost every day, and we try to take walks through the park (or at least to get ice cream down the hill ;).

I still have no feelings toward either gender, although Riley has been saying she thinks it is a sister now for a while... I think that is what she is hoping for! I really think she will be happy with either gender though, she is just so excited about being a big sister! She loves coming to my appointments with me and hearing the baby's heartbeat, and she likes helping pump the bp cuff and to take my blood pressure.

In general riley updates, she is doing fantastic, and I while I know it will be a big adjustment for her when the baby comes, I think she will do pretty well! She is doing really well with potty training, even though we aren't really working on it a whole lot. At school they said she is ready to go diaper-free outside of naps, and that is what we've been doing at home too, and so far there haven't been many accidents. We aren't brave enough to try diaper-free away from home, though, so she still wears diapers a lot-  and night/naps will probably take a while still. But for us never really doing any potty training, we are pretty happy with her progress! I think I am not in a huge rush, because from everything I've heard even if she is potty trained she will regress back to diapers when the baby comes :)

Besides being excited about the baby, her favorite things lately are jumping (randomly and for no reason), singing and doing ring-around-the-rosy, playing with water outside, and loving on "her puppy" (Lili). She and Lili have become best-buds, meaning that riley is constantly hugging and kissing her, and Lili stays for it instead of walking away, or even seeks out riley's attention. Riley talks up a storm and can sing all the words to several songs now, but is still silent almost anywhere we go or when new people are around. She will talk to her friends at school, but doesn't really talk to teachers or other adults. They are working on getting her to be more talkative, but I don't think it's a big deal- I know she can communicate exceptionally well when she wants to. I love how she communicates about emotions so much too, and always is concerned if she thinks we are not happy (which will get us a hug, kiss, and the question- "Did I make you so happy? Are you happy now?") And it was quite amusing a few weeks ago when she told me she needed to "go cool off" for a few minutes, returning to say she was better now!

She is also learning incredibly fast- She has known her alphabet, counting 1-10, and colors for quite a while now, but she is starting to recognize a lot of letters and know what letters different words start with, she can count to 20 (though still missing numbers, and sometimes counts over 20!), and she actually counts objects now and can tell me how many objects are in a small set. She seems to be finally getting the one-to-one correspondence of counting, which is exciting! She is also amazing at puzzles (for her age, of course!). She has no trouble rotating puzzle pieces to figure out how they fit, and often does it by looking at the pieces rather than trial/error. She can build a 3x7 floor puzzle almost completely independently already! She needs some help on bigger ones, but can still fit many pieces together in small clusters on her own.

Riley is also incredibly interactive when reading books. I just recently noticed this, and it is so interesting! She will point out emotions of the different characters in the book, and talk about how their emotions change in the story. She points out when things are silly, and asks if she doesn't know what something is. She recognizes letters while we are reading, and while she obviously doesn't read or anything yet, she likes to point to the words and pretend to follow along, and likes to pretend to read books to me like a teacher, while pointing to words as she talks. We are actually not great about reading to her- we mostly only read to her at bedtime when she gets anywhere from 3-6 books depending on their length and the time. I do know she spends time on her own in the "library" corner at school, and they are read to a lot, so I guess that helps!

Okay I guess this was enough rambling- I feel so sad I don't write here much, and then feel like I need to try to think of everything I might want to remember in a few years when I do! I already feel like I left stuff out of my old posts when I go back and read them. Oh well... I'm sure there will be many memories that do stick! My goal now is to just try and take a lot more pictures than I have, starting with a new belly pic- hopefully to be posted soon :)

A couple quick pictures!

Recent pictures of the belly and baby beaver: